I can't explain the first ring burbs losing population. Is Blue Ash Shrinking? Could it be a large number of people are stupidly only wanting brand new cookie cutter homes? Could it be minorities moving in and the white moving out again? (I hope this is not the case). Or is it just an anomaly?

That trend, Mallory argued, points to a problem Cincinnati shares with its closest neighbors: an older housing stock.

Mallory said he would de-emphasize the new houses being built at Citirama sites in favor of rehabilitating vacant buildings in a "block-by-block, street-by-street" approach.

Rehab is the way to go, but for some unknown reason, people want to live in a world like the Desperate Housewives. Don't people see that their lives suck living out in a world where you can't tell one house from the other?

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

The Enquirer is reporting that a county lead investigation was begun to review how police handled interaction with social services regarding reports of child abuse by Councilman Sam Malone on his son. Joe Deters stated a Grand Jury reviewed this as well and found no criminal wrong doing. Sheriff Simon Leis's department is handling the county initiated investigation and the final report is expected to be submitted to him on Thursday.

What does this mean? Well, the details are might thin, but someone complained about how police handled reports of child abuse by Malone. What is lacking is do they mean the night the incident occurred which caused Malone's arrest or could there be prior incidents the police did not handle correctly? Were there prior incidents that police did not report to social services? How good are records of police calls and patrol visits?

Just to avoid confusion, I want to make it clear that I am trying to read between the lines of why this investigation was called. Simon Leis would not waste much time on this if there were not at least plausible allegations or complaints.

UPDATE 9PM:WCPO has more and tonight will have even more on their I-Team. Yea, it may be over the top, but the situation warrants all the attention it can get.

The Historical Landmark Board has vetoed the Fountain Square plan to move the Fountain. City Council reportedly will be able to over rule the veto, but they must do so today at the last meeting before Council's summer break, if the Plan is to stay on track. They could call a special meeting, but the votes are likely there to keep the plan going.

The Brian and Joe Show on WAIF 88.3FM will be joined by three great guests discussing young professionals in Cincinnati: The Enquirer's Maggie Downs, City Council candidate Nick Spencer, and Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber Sid DÂ?Souza. 10 AM today or check out the POD Cast.

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

The Supreme Court refused to to hear several other cases involving separation of church and state and let stand lower court rulings that prevented religious displays in schools and one theocratic town council in South Carolina from beginning its meetings with a prayer praising Jesus Christ. It will not keep the theocrats from trying to push religion onto others, but it might make them more reluctant to waste their money. This will keep them at bay until Bush gets more Scalia type theocrats in courts.

I give full credit to the courthouses in Kentucky that quickly removed the Ten Commandments from the courthouse walls after the SCOTUS ruling. I applaud the willingness to honorably follow the rule of law.

Purging Democrats from government jobs appears to have been one action taken by the Republican Administration in KY to gain and maintain power in the state. Now, who was pissed about someone being compared to Stalin? First we get torte allowed to happen under the Bush Administration, now we get a Putsch in Kentucky. Where's the next 5 year plan?

Here is how you know Bush is weak President. If George Bush wants to address the Country on the Iraq war, then he should be sitting at his desk talking into the camera telling us his views. He should have the courage to face on his own.

Instead he is playing to polls and marketing advisors and is holding his speech in front of a friendly military crowd at a military base and will likely be surrounded by soldiers, who will be cheering for Fearless Leader. He asked for Network air time for this, but this is just like a campaign speech, not an address to the country. THIS IS PURE PROPAGANDA. There can be no doubt of that. He will not have any new ideas or content. It will just be a rally around the president because his poll numbers have dropped like a rock and midterm elections are just around the corner.

This is the real Bush. He is worse than every other modern President and plays games with the public, especially when it comes to going to war. I hope people don't see this speech as anything more than a PR stunt. I know the faithful will eat this up like pigs at trough, so I am sure the Propaganda will work on a quite a few.

What is causing the recent up tick of gun violence recently? Most of the incidents I would put on drug related idiots. This incident outside a dance club reportedly starting as an argument. Why would there be guns in the hands of these young 'kids?' I would guess they are not drug dealers. Do they have the guns on them as a result of conceal & carry laws? I doubt that. Do they have them out of fear? Maybe. Do they have guns out of some warped need for instant power and respect that they can't seem to earn any other way? I would guess yes. How is this type of problem addressed? How do young adults become ego driven fools who can't refrain from shooting people over schoolyard type conflicts?

Questions continue to mount over the relationship between Gov. Bob Taft and those advising on investing in the Coin Deal where millions of dollars in coins went missing. The campaign contributions to the senior state officials were huge: Petro, Montgomery, and Blackwell all got big bucks from the investment companies managing much of the state institutions' money. The questions will continue until someone is thrown overboard. There are two ways for this to happen. The first is the easiest: dump Taft. The second is for it to be a primary issue and one of the three in the race is attacked by the others. That would be more difficult, but it sure would be fun to watch and even better when a Dem would win the governorship next year.

Sunday, June 26, 2005

It looks like Downtown Masonis not a hot spot of activity. I guess the small town "life style centers" and big box retail are just killing everything. Well, with all of the plans to build up Downtown Cincinnati, I wonder if anyone can lend Mason a hand?

By saying that the city's future is 'bleak' because of the gun violence, it is clear that Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters hates the city. I mean, you can't speak ill of the Luken Administration. If you do, you provide aid and comfort to the Criminals who surely will see this on TV and in the newspaper and know they have a divided county where they can just divide it more and not have to worry about ever being caught.

Yes, Virginia, I am joking. I am not joking when I say Deters cares little about the city. It is my opinion that Deter is the poster child for a large percentage of those who have left the city for the burbs and now do not care much about it. They take a Nero view to anything happening in it, not remembering they are a living in suburban Rome, where the fire won't stop because of a white picket fence.

Why would you jeer a peace march? The situation in Hamilton sounds and looks more like something from a 1964 newsreel showing civil rights marchers with racists yelling at them. The media reports, which are a limited means to understand the story paint a grim picture of a small neighborhood.

The father of girl does not appear to be helping much. I at first thought he was trying to calm things down, but when he joins the crowd yelling at a peace march, then he becomes part of the problem facing that community. His daughter should get all of our sympathy for the horrible crime done to her, and every action must be taken to catch the person responsible, but the father should not turn that into an "us vs. them" belief that has no relation to justice for his daughter.

What I get from this Enquirer Article "GOP counting on ads, Dems on shoe leather" is that the GOP is using mass marketing to gain in as many of their base, which in this district is high, to gain votes. The Democrats don't have the bread yet to do that and are instead going door to door to make the personal connect ion to voters, which in the end may get more new voters out to vote. Whether they vote for the Dems or not is what the Dems have to worry about.

Schmidt is running this campaign like she is the incumbent, which not only is offensive to liberals, it should offend regular Republicans who don't want to be taken for granted. Filming a TV ad in Washington? What kind of arrogance does a person have to possess to take off a day of a campaign to fly to DC to shoot a commercial, when she has just over a month before the election? Schmidt should have to earn the seat, not just be awarded it because she pulled off an upset in a divided primary.

Hackett needs cash. If he can match television ads with her, tout his military service in Iraq, and connect on a personal level with voters face to face, he has a chance. He will not get any help from the mainstream political opinion makers in town, which will either back Schmidt or just ignore it altogether as a perceived exercise in futility. Hackett is not an experienced enough politician to really be underestimated, but he is setting the ground work for 2006. Don’t count him out this time around yet, but I think the more effort he puts in, the better off he will be either this year, or next.

Saturday, June 25, 2005

The facts presented in this WCPO story about an alleged sexual assault paint a picture of something that seems like something other than how it is presented. The headline indicates something approaching rape occurred in a class room at UC. In reading the details of the story it sounds like a guy got aggressive and touched and kissed a woman when he should not have.

This is an attack? This is News? I don't want to trivialize improper sexual advances, but touching a breast does not rank a story on WCPO. The guy sounds like a dirt bag, but this is the kind of thing that warranted a slap across the face, not a police report. I am basing this totally on the news story that while it sensationalizes the fact it reports, it may not be reporting all of the facts. This type of thing surely happens every night at local college bars and parties. Just because it happened in a class room, WCPO has chosen to make this a story and ride the hype and fear of UC parents who might be more inclined to watch WCPO or read the website.

Friday, June 24, 2005

Charlie Luken vetoed a plan this week that would have installed cameras at street corners to catch traffic violations on film and then ticket the offenders by mail. I generally don't like big brother creeping in on me as I walk or drive the streets. I was not up in arms over this one. I don't drive through red lights. If they started to record your speed down Columbia Parkway, and started issuing tickets, well, I would be out with picket signs and megaphones. Here I don't like it, but I am doing that which most Americans live by: if it doesn't affect me, I don't care. I do care, just not enough to take action. Mayor Luken, however, took action for me. I agree with this action.

Outdoors computing, do you do it? I have done it on Fountain Square and was not impressed. On my next day off, I may try out Piatt Park downtown. I am more interesting in indoors Wifi, mostly because I can there rain or shine, year round.

The alleged rape of a nine year old white girl by a Hispanic man has unleashed ethnic hate in some Hamilton neighborhoods. Reports of threats against Hispanics are coming in, and the ugly face of bigotry is once again clouding Bulter County. It is amazing how quickly blame can shift from the actual suspect to anyone who shares an ethnic or racial background with that suspect.

Will this be called an attack on Christianity because people are taking steps to keep religious freedom alive in a public institution? How can one practice one's religion freely if they can't force and pressure others into following it? (Feel the sarcasm)

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

It has taken forever and has been met with near rebellion from the police union, but the city is expected to hire a new assistant chief from outside Cincinnati. That will be a first for Cincinnati. I hope it is the first step in building a new atmosphere in the police force and ushers in a new age of cultural diversity in the CPD management.

How will people complain about it? They will find a way, but I just wonder how.

Maryanne Zeleznik, news director at WNKU, will become news director at the combined WVXU and WGUC stations once the station merger is approved by the FCC. Maryanne Zeleznik is a great asset to local news and hopefully will be positioned to create much more local news for the two stations.

The article has this nugget too:

There's also a chance that Zeleznik and Hanselman could be heard on WNKU-FM later this year. Singleton says he's interested in exploring a local public radio news cooperative with WGUC-FM, WVXU-FM and Miami University's WMUB-FM (88.5 MHz), which Eiswerth proposed last year.

If the four stations combine news resources, I believe it would be a boon to local news in the area. It also could maximize quality levels and cost savings. That might open up more money for other local programming.

It is a criminal lawyer which he may need if possible ethics violations prove true or if Cointgate continues to grow. Taft may be in trouble. How will this affect the 2006 governor's race? Will it boost Dems? Will it tag all of those part of the Taft Administration, nearly all of the GOP field?

The way this article paints CAC's plans to improve their exhibitions, it gives the appearance (or maybe just the tone I detected) that CAC is already obsolete and needs improvement. I think the contrary. It is a vibrant place with great things happening. I don't know why they need the improvements, but I don't think a place like the CAC is hurting.

Check out WAIF's the Brian and Joe Radio Show. Brian Mueller and Joe Wessels have put together a weekly show with local news, talk, and interviews with Cincinnati area happening people. It is every Wednesday at 10 AM. If you can't hear it live, like me, the archives are up and running.

During Fringe I was able to meet and chat for a bit with Joe Wessels about his show. I've be added their show's website, which is a blog, to my blogroll, so have a read and listen.

Monday, June 20, 2005

It amazes me to no end when someone like Shaunna Howat writes a column with the most assumptive tone that reeks of ignorance and of blind faith in the Bush Administration. "It's us against them," she rattles off from behind her column. I don't know if she has been serving in the military or not, but I doubt it. This smells of astro-turf on the surface, but it is so blindly written by an ignorant person, that I doubt it.

Why doesn't Shaunna just advocate executing the prisoners? If they are all guilty because George Bush says so, why not just kill them? Who needs the rule of law? Who needs the Geneva Convention? Shaunna has the undertone of hate and revenge seething between the lines. It is subtle, but she is holding back, not wanting to appear like a blood thirsty ghoul.

Shaunna is the kind of ignorant person that endangers the American Democracy. Anyone whiling to blindly accept everything their leadership says is a fool. Anyone willing to blindly support the actions of this administration is willfully ignorant and a fool.

Saturday, June 18, 2005

Councilmember David Crowley pens "A Father's Day tale" discussing the efforts to repeal Article 12 here in Cincinnati, which banned equal rights for people based on sexual orientation. He also talks about the power of conversing with people about issues directly, not in the political rivers, where people are detached from the humanity involved.

Friday, June 17, 2005

When reading the quote from the article in the Post, I can make no other conclusion that Winburn is both a religious bigot and theocrat, bent on establishing a Christians only government.

In the former book, Winburn writes, "We Christians must clean up politics. It is our job to elect only born-again believers to public office.

If officeholders are not Christian and refuse to obey the laws of God, we must work hard, under the law, to unseat them."

This is the best the GOP have to offer? Granted, it would take a socially liberal Republican to even get my attention, and that at this point is very rare, or even impossible

I applaud Leslie Ghiz for skipping Winburn's Sermon. I am flabbergasted that Damon Lynch III showed up. If he was there as a spectator, that is fine. The article leaves open how or why Damon was there, but it does not bode well for an endorsed Democratic candidate to support Winburn who spouts oddly hardcore support for the Cincinnati Police. Winburn takes a nuanced stance in supporting the police, but comes out on their side on most points.

Lynch can be noncommittal on the mayor's race, but he might go a long way in presenting a team player attitude to Democratic voters by saying that he will vote for one of the three Democrats running. Showing up at a GOP event and telling a reporter you don't know who you are going to vote for is either really bad press management, or a shot across the bow of the Dems. If Lynch says he wants to branch out to other groups for support, most would say he was talking about non-blacks, not Republicans.

The shooting downtown was shocking, but this type of hype ridden analysis will create panic and unwarranted fear. Did people freak out when a suburban trucking company was the scene a crazy guy going on a shooting spree? No, but because this is downtown and the scaredy cats living outside the city will use an isolated incident as a further reason to support their irrational fear of the City. Why do people bother living within 100 miles of a large metro area if they can't take news about a shooting in a city?

Yes, this was freaky and unnerving. It is not indicative of life in downtown.

But as I sat at the event and listened to my peers speak, I realized that not much has changed since grade school.

We simply want the same things we always wanted.

We want people to play with. We want recess and activities. We want yummy snacks. We want music class, computer labs and art. And we want a bus to take us home at the end of the day.

Yes, even beyond my occasional 'teenage angst' attacks where I am 15 years old again for a few minutes of sheer terror, we are otherwise not much beyond life in the 2nd grade. When I was in 2nd grade I think I was watching WKRP. I actually like the idea of a WKRP museum. I think a WKRP festival might be more fun. Who would not want a huge game of "Are you a Bailey Quarters or Jennifer Marlowe kind of man?" I myself would be a Bailey kind of a guy.

The Federal Government may cut funding for the Banks project now that the County took over the show. Add that to the city council troubles, which Nick Spencer indicates would not pass this plan, and we have a plan sinking.

The problem with the plan is that it is going to be a sterile mini-burbia tone for the non-urbanist, smack dab in the middle of a city. What it needs is an urbanists touch. 3CDC should have been keep involved. We don't need a Newport on the Levee feel on the Banks, people don't want to live there. We need something we character, and this plan has nothing to indicate it has that.

Winburn is the founder of the Encampment, a College Hill church where he often preaches and performs exorcisms.......Winburn is the author of a book about Biblical economic principles entitled, "Releasing the Money Anointing: You are Anointed to Receive Money!"

The power of Christ compels me to paint Charlie Winburn as a looney tune.

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Will Tom Brinkman run for Mayor of Cincinnati? Will Charlie Winburn instead get the GOP endorsement? If Winburn is going to get it, what are the GOP bigwigs waiting for, other than Brinkman making up his mind?

Fred Pastry needs to fess up on the elaborate displays of Dog Porn that 'someone' was lusting for on a daily basis during Fringe, instead of dreaming of Jason Bruffy's "Mr. Willie." When you lust for dogs in thongs, you can't hide it for long. Please roll over and admit your addition Fred.

Council is ready to rubber stamp the Fountain Square plan. Let's get it done and get going. If they city can get this going it can put attention on Main Street (all the way down to 6th street) and let the county hang out there with the Banks project.

The battle over the Banks comes to a head with city council lashing out. This has the hands of the County's toxic twins (DeWine and Heimlich) all over it. They have been out there running their own little show behind closed doors. They want the city out of it. Why? Why was 3CDC left out of the process? Who is making money on this deal and whose back is being scratched?

You may have missed the news, or you really may not because I don't think anyone has reported anywhere they fact that a new restaurant has opened up downtown. Rise and Shine has redone the former Frisch's Restaurant on 6th Street and is open and running. It is a part of a significant change to the lower Main Street area with Mana's going strong and the rehab of the Fort Washington Hotel. This is making the area behind the Arnoff center into yet another up and coming area with strong retail, residential, and restaurants. I wonder why you have not read about that.

The link on NPR is not up yet but the Heartless Bastards were profiled this morning on NPR's All Things Considered Morning Edition. A local band is on the way up. They are listed as playing Alchemize on July 23, but they may not be back through town as much with a record deal and national attention. Good for them!

Nick Spencer points out another positive step going on in Covington's MainStrasse. Covington officials are considering shutting down traffic in the MainStrasse area on weekends and allowing opening containers in the streets. This is an idea Nick and CT had a while ago for the Main Street area here in Cincinnati. That idea was just dropped like most efforts the city was considering for the Main Street area. This is what I mean when I say that they city can't focus on more than one thing, and the Fountain Square Plan is all they have right now on their minds. They are not taking steps to keep a vital and vibrant area from growing in favor of building up an area that caters to a static population.

Monday, June 13, 2005

Jackie Demaline has a nice closing article on this year's Fringe Festival which ended last night. I wish to personally thank those from Cincinnati Advance who represented our growing organization very well. I had fun myself volunteering, even when I wasn't on a shift I pressed myself into service to do a little bit of heavy lifting. Let me tell you, the bases for lighting beams are freaking heavy when you take them up a flight of stairs in the dying heat of Memorial Hall.

The shows were great, the performers where great, and it was best to be able to walk right up after a show and shake their hands and talk about it. That is the part of Fringe most people don't take advantage of, but that was there every night at the Bar Series. I went to all but 2 of the bar series events, and let me tell you, I am damn tired. I can't imagine how tired those who did 1,000 times more work during the Festival than I did feel.

I look forward to next year's event and hope those who came out to volunteer or see a show will be back next year and keep up their involvement with the Community. We would love to have you all take part in any or all of the Cincinnati Advance Activities.

With the 800 Pound Gorilla in advertising saying they are cutting back on TV ads, does that signal the beginning of the demise of television as the number one media type? Has the Internet and other direct networking conduits finally taken a chunk out of the boob tube?

Today will be a very heavy day for the 2nd Congressional District candidates. They will be out and about all over the district begging for votes.

Who is going to win? Since I am not a registered member of either party, I will not be voting tomorrow. I don't like telling people who to vote for by giving endorsements. I would normally say who I am voting for, but since I am not voting, I am not saying who I would vote for. Instead, I offer predictions and invite others to chime in with theirs.

The Democrats: Paul Hackett will win. Sanders is the only other person with any possible chance, but I think with the Dem organizations backing him, Hackett will pull away with a solid margin.

The Republicans: This one is tough. There are four who could win: DeWine, Brinkman, McEwen, and Schmidt. Even with Schmidt's Enquirer endorsement, I think she will finish fourth. Even with his rabid support on this blog, I think Brinkman will finish third. It is tough to then pick the winner. DeWine should have won easily with his funding and organization, but he has big time enemies. McEwen is as much if not more of an opportunist than DeWine and should not really be a factor, he has no fresh ground team. I believe it will be very close between the two, but that to the surprise of the right wing conservatives, DeWine will win.

Sunday, June 12, 2005

I am not one for online quizes, but I saw this one on Shwango and it was interesting.

You scored as Modernist. Modernism represents the thought that science and reason are all we need to carry on. Religion is unnecessary and any sort of spirituality halts progress. You believe everything has a rational explanation. 50% of Americans share your world-view.

UPDATE: I took it again and am something different. I am just fickle? No, not really, the same top four I had are the same top four again, just in varied order.

You scored as Existentialist. Existentialism emphasizes human capability. There is no greater power interfering with life and thus it is up to us to make things happen. Sometimes considered a negative and depressing world view, your optimism towards human accomplishment is immense. Mankind is condemned to be free and must accept the responsibility.

The Enquirer has made endorsements in both 2nd Congressional District's Primaries set for Tuesday.

For the GOP they picked: Jean Schmidt. This is a bit of a surprise to me. I would said they would have gone with McEwen or DeWine, but it appears both men's negatives of being opportunist office seekers turned of the Board.

For the Dems they picked: Paul Hackett. This was not a surprise. Hackett has been the favorite to win the primary for quite a while now. This just helps further that end.

This time we get inside the developer chosen by the County. Korte's descriptions is of a political player who knows how to grease the wheels, but who has a track record with some past bumps. This effort seems hasty. Will there be follow through? I am very skeptical that we will see the plan executed to the maximum. Something will happen, but how long will it take? If the county pushes this forward, then great. I think the City should stick to Fountain Square until that is done, then just hop on to the Banks if things work out. They already look like they are on the outside of this project, so why no stay on the outside and just reap the benefit of it getting done, if it gets done?

Is this piece by Barry M. Horstman a news article or an opinion column? It might be considered News Analysis, but this superfluous anecdote it leans more towards a column:

And for the superstitious, there's this: At one forum, as a party strategist laid out an exceedingly optimistic scenario for a Democratic victory, a large sign saying "Hamilton County Democratic Party" loudly fell from a wall. Talk about bad omens.

That is news worthy? Why not mention that the Miami University Young Republicans had a sign that misspelled "Republican?"

The shows remain the same, but the locations for two of the performances have changed. Each show will be maxed out with the number of seats that can fit in the venues. The final show especially will have lots of space, so you still can join Fringe at the last minute. There is even a reception before the final show at 7 PM at Memorial Hall Sunday. Make the effort and see great theater!

With the County and the City not working together are we going to get a half finished development? Will the county's motion get the City in gear? Can the city focus on both Fountain Square and the Riverfront?

Questions are now being asked about when Governor Bob Taft's Office knew about the Losses incurred by the Ohio Bureau of Workers? Compensation Fund. This fund's losses included rare coin investments, some of which are considered "missing." Taft's office may have bee informed of the problem six months ago, not just recently. Does this matter? Not politically, but it make me wonder if someone is lying or covering something up.

Even Bronson is pissed about investing in coins. Taft really has no fans at all.

The man who helped kill AM radio as we know it has purchased "The Ed Schultz Show," a liberal/populist radio show heard locally on 1530AM. Schultz is the biggest liberal radio talk show host out there and his star is rising. I have heard his show and I am not a big fan of that brand of radio. He not only sounds a little bit like Rush Limbaugh, but his tone sometimes strays into Rush's area. Not the content, just in the delivery.

I laugh a little every time I hear his name because in the town where I grew up, Ed Schultz was a big Auto Dealership. My best friend's dad used to work there.

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

The GOP primary race for the 2nd Congressional District is building to a fever pitch. Even Bronson’s column today gives off that lesser of two evils vibe to it when he leans on the scale in favor of McEwen over DeWine. Schmidt and Brinkman are still out there and they have a following. Will they both stick it out? At this point there is little reason not to, except that as Greg Korte reminds us in his column today that the GOP still have not endorsed anyone for Mayor, yet. It is Winburn by default, but does Brinkman still want it? Is he in position to take it from Winburn?

Even though it had already gone to press, getting the Midnight Announcement at the Cincy Fringe after party at Arnold's was fun:

On Sunday, June 12, these three 2005 Picks of the Fringe will receive one additional performance. These performances not only recognize the artists' hard work, but also ensure the existence of the next season's festival: all proceeds from these three shows go to the 2006 Cincinnati Fringe Festival.

I didn't go to see Lily Tomlin at the Arnoff last night, but I did see the large crowd file in from my art gallery post. From the article I found this interesting:

The winner of six Emmys, a Grammy and two Tony Awards also did her homework. Her famous character, Ernestine the telephone operator - famous for her "One ringy dingy, two ringy dingy" line - held a fake conversation with City Councilman Jim Tarbell. Marge Schott, the Bengals, Reds and Bearcats were the butt of other jokes.

This is interesting to me because of a quick anecdote I heard while at the art gallery. It appears that like all great comedians, Lily Tomlin does her homework. I hope this does not sound like revealing a magician's tricks, but during the day I am told she spent quite a bit of time chatting with some of the Arnoff staff about Cincinnati, which is where I presume she got some of her references. Jim Tarbell if he was lucky maybe got to have dinner with Lily, but that is just a random guess.

This is just like a classic story from college days I was told during Freshman Orientation about Red Buttons. On his visit a year or two before my Freshman year (a long long time ago....) he spent the afternoon walking around Uptown Oxford talking to people, visting places, and getting a feel for the town before he went on stage for a Parents Weekend show that night. His show referenced local places and people that ads that special touch to the audience that makes the difference between just having an act and being a performer.

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

Jacki Demaline announces in her article today that Cincy Fringe show "Does This Monologue Make Me Look Fat?" by Amy Salloway has won the first Enquirer Acclaim Award, which recognizes excellence in Cincinnati Theater.

The big rush is to get Amy a flight back to Cincinnati for Sunday's "Pick of Fringe" which illustrates the three best picks of the festival. If you have some Frequent Flyer Miles to spare, this wonderful playwright and actress could use your help. Call up Jeff Syroney from the Fringe at (513) 542-0195 to help.

Peter was very kind to respond to my email regarding my challenge to him:

Thanks for the note. Question: How many times can the Fringe Fest be onfront pages of the Enquirer before it loses Fringe status and becomesMainstream?

Just kidding. I'll check out your challenge and consider it. Prettyjammed up right now, but it sounds interesting.

Best wishes,

Peter Bronson

I don't want to call Peter a Chicken or anything, but well I would bet he's CHICKEN. It is not like I want to goad him into coming to a Fringe event. That would be just too much for a busy guy to do. It is not like he has all week to do it, with shows running through Sunday.

At the Fringe last night I was privileged to see Amy Salloway's one woman performance of Does This Monologue Make Me Look Fat? It was a fabulous show. Hilarious, touching, a little raunchy, three things that make it wonderful. The last show is tonight at 9 PM at Memorial Hall. It was nearly sold out last night and tonight it may be standing room only. Get your tickets early and get down there early to see what may be one of Fringe's best productions for 2005.

It gets less attention but there are two art galleries at the Cincy Fringe Festival. The Post gave a little attention in Friday's edition. I myself will be staffing one of the Galleries Tomorrow, Wednesday and Saturday Afternoon. If you would like to find out which one, you will just have to visit both of them, do that or make it to the bar series and I am sure you will see me there. This news may instead make the Art Galleries biggest days Thursday and Friday.

My Challenge is simple: I want to see Peter Bronson at the Galleries he attacked in his column last year. I want to discuss with him, in a very friendly manner, what he thinks of art and why he hates it so much, well all art outside of Dogs Playing Poker.

If you want to help push him on a bit, use the little mail icon on this post and email it to him at pbronson@enquirer.com.

I hope someone at the Enquirer might be able to pass this on too.

I am not looking for a showdown, I would just like to see how or what he finds wrong with the art and people's person expression. I want him to see some of the performances. I really think he and everyone would enjoy them.

Sunday, June 05, 2005

Last night I saw Karoake Knights, a One-Man Rock Opera by Tim Mooney. What is so cool about Fringe is that I had that chance to meet Tim earlier in the week at the Bar Series and some friends even helped him pack up his set for the night. I was able to chat with him about his show and his other works later on at the Greenwich. The turnout at the Greenwich was excellent as well. Many artists nearly all of the staff and lots of volunteers came out to the Walnut Hills mainstay.

Shows I still want to see:

A/ThePostModernLoveStory by the BlueForms Theatre Group

Britney Spears, and All the Other Shit We Deal With! by Odds & Ends Productions

Jonathan Alter pens a what if column for Newsweek discussing what would happen if Watergate were to have happened during today's political and media climate. His points are dead on. There would have been no Watergate or rather it would have been a short lived moment the lazy media of today would have not wanted to touch 'in time of war.' I will be very interesting in hearing the conservatives try and say otherwise, much like Peter Bronson tried to do today with his idiotic notion of equating Bill Clinton getting a blow job to Dick Nixon's political foot soldiers committing B&E on the DNC Headquarters, which was just the tip of the iceberg. Nixon's crimes from Cambodia to Ellsberg and beyond far out weight even the bullshit of the crackpots trying to nail Clinton made up.

DeWine was booed soundly by the crowd in Anderson Township Wednesday night, and walked away from the GOP club's candidate forum with a rating of "not qualified at this time'' while club members voted McEwen "highly qualified.''

People who all surely voted for Pat DeWine for County Commissioner and who agree with the guy on most issues was booed? This is like Junior High.

A mud slinging fest means to me that this race is tight. Polling is likely difficult because of the regional activist bias that seems to be sprouting up where one local group, like in Anderson Township, have on the surface a group think tone, if not actual consensus. At this point I don't see a clear favorite, but Brinkman is not getting ink, so either he is saving up for a late charge with a big media blitz or it comes down to McEwen and DeWine, with the others being the difference in who wins.

Saturday, June 04, 2005

Jake Speed and the Freddies Live at the Northside TavernGreat night, great music, and great band. I had to step out before the third set, but as usual the band was on. J-Dog, mandolin player Justin, needs to sing more often. He was adding some harmony on a song and it was great.

Friday, June 03, 2005

Retired Accountant Roy Tate Jr. of Reading has a guest column on Social Security today and he makes what I find to be the stupidest presumption:

If past Social Security taxes had been invested in personal income-producing asset accounts, this national debt would not exist, and taxpayers would not be forced to repay what Congress has "borrowed" from taxpayers retirement funds.

First, with all due disrespect, unless this old guy is younger than my mother, which I doubt, then he did not have his retirement age increased and therefore is getting more money back than those younger than us are. So when he wants anyone else to take risks so he can get his higher level check until he dies at age 101, then he can just stuff it.

Second, he wants to say that since we have not had a depression where investors literally lost their shirts since SSA was started, therefore we will not have one tomorrow and that is reason enough to assume that in the future we should put all of the risk on the individual is just idiotic. A bean counter does not know a thing about risk. Yes, I am letting my Business School Rivalry show. Investing is not a science. You can’t predict how the market will be in an hour or a day and surely not 20 years.

In his contention he of course looks at this at a globally collective investment level. Sure Bill Gates would have made money or just not have cared if did or not, but the Stock Market is not a win-win situation. Stock prices just don't rise for everyone; the 10% market assumption is over time and is collective. In that measurement for every guy who made 20% there are plenty more who made 0%. If he instead used a model that had the government investing the money in the market where the losses would be outweighed by the gains and everyone would benefit or lose from both, then he might have an idea worth considering that does not put individuals at risk. It has other problems, but it would not be as lame brained.

Like the rest push to end Social Security he seems to not know the difference between a defined benefit plan and defined contribution plan. Risk matters.

The 2nd District GOP primary is now focused on religion. It may or may not be focused on which brand of Christianity the candidate partakes in (there will never be a non-Christian Republican elected to office in this district in my life time), what we have here is who is more religious than the other guy/gal. Being religious to the conservative Christian is no longer just about going to church on Sunday. Today it is about believing and pushing the 'Moral Values' issues, which are not dogmatic rules of the religion, but have become de facto scripture to the theocratic movement.

It is sad and it has crept up on the society. The GOP party activists are almost exclusively conservative Christians. You don't find many of the Wall Street Republicans or the Libertarian Republicans at party meetings, at least not the ones who don't either accept the religious litmus test or who accept it as a reality of power. Where is this leading the country when one political party is becoming a religious party?

A Ministry song from college days rattled through my head while reading Maggie Downs latest column. Many things are rattling in my head these days, but that song with its loud sound fits the emotions surrounding the tragic murder in Hyde Park. Will anyone ever walk by the fountain there and not think of the killer washing his hands there? Nice cheerful though, eh?

At the YPCincy event last night I think many were impressed. I was impressed with the plan for revamping Fountain Square. I think it will be good for the city overall. There are issues out there and realizations that people need to make:

This is a Done Deal. There will not be much changed to the design and look of the square. The changes will be by City Council to the lease plans and the finances, but they will be minor.

3CDC is planning on privatizing the management of Fountain Square. The garage I believe is currently operated by an outside firm, but in this Plan 3CDC as a private entity would run the actual Square for the City. The City would own the entire Square and Garage, but would not gain the revenue it has now.

The Fountain will move. 3CDC CEO Stephen Leeper could not push that more. It was almost the obsession of the presentation. The way he sold it makes sense on the surface, but it assumes a level of deterioration of the garage that I did not know is established as fact.

What is the target market for this development? It appears like they are going for as wide a market as they can. They throw out the classic "family friend" phase that generally makes me cringe. It was not dwelled upon, which at a Young Processionals meeting of mostly single or childless couples was wise. I was floorws when they threw in as a regional attraction the Kentucky Speedway. Are NASCAR Dads really going to come downtown in large numbers?

The issue of who controls the public stage is a rather large civil rights issue. What was not clear to me was who was going to decide who gets to use the square for rallies, protests, and other gatherings. Will commercial interests get preference over the average Joe? Will the lease with 3CDC give them the right to keep certain people out?

There will be a small performance stage or platform set up permanently, but with little room. 3CDC would have more portable staging, but how and when it could be used would likely cost more and limit non-profits from their use, without donation of the fees likely to be tacked on.

Parking fees will go up in the garage. Right now for the evening it only costs a buck. That price would rise to 3 bucks. This is not really going to change that many minds, but it will not improve the perception that it costs money. It compares to what is in Newport at the Levee, so if you would go there and pay, this should not deter you.

Finances are somewhat foggy. It appears that the city would not have that much to cough up, but the level their revenues would drop is unclear.

Something missing from the presentation was the timeline for the retailers/restaurants to open up shop in the area. This I think is a concern. This project is going to start this year and open next summer. I don't see the retailers/restaurateurs moving in for up to a couple or more years after that. Talks with companies may be further along than I perceive, so their construction may happen while the redesign is ongoing.

What matters most for this entire project, as one reception attendee put it, is the perception that something is happening in downtown. There has to be a buzz and some action must be visible. If that happens this could snowball other projects, making them happen. If that does not happen, that is where I believe the Banks, Vine Street, Main Street, and the rest of the plans out there will not be realized.

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

Well, I guess they figured the image make-over will work for him or that the Child Abuser vote is a cornerstone of the GOP voting block, but according to the Post, the Hamilton County Republican Party endorsed Sam Malone for City Council, despite his pending criminal charges of child abuse and despite him admitting that he hit the kid and making no refutation of the allegations that he hit his son with a belt on the arms, back, chest, and buttocks. A really shameful display of arrogance and cowardice combined. They appear to think that people will not care about it, don't pay attention, or like it. I think they are also fearful of pissing off the Charlie Winburn voting block who have praised Malone for beating his child.

The GOP only has four (Sam Malone, Chris Monzel, Leslie Ghiz, and John Eby) so far and at most seven will get the endorsement. That is a far cry from 2003 when they fielded 9. As it stands now the Party appears to have given up on the city, which I think reflects the attitude of the Party on more than just the prospects of getting someone elected.

Ghiz is likely to get on council, but the others will need to work hard to win.

I am surprised they don't want to support Winburn yet. Time is running out on him to get into the race. He stands no chance at this point of winning, no matter what a few have speculated on, but I would have thought that the GOP would have wanted to avoid the type of humiliation they faced in 2001 when they did not field a candidate.

Get off your ass and go to a show. The press is good and the shows will push the limits of ideas. I wonder if Peter Bronson will actually go to show this year, instead of bitching about the festival and not seeing a performance.

Check out the Fringe Bar Series. I will be there for sure tomorrow night and likely many nights over the next few weeks, having a 'few' brews. Say hello if you make it out.

People are talking up a storm over the plans for Fountain Square. I have concerns not so much about the plan, I like the plan. I fear the motives, goals, and desired market. I also fear that this will be it. The City will say they have their entertainment district that is plain and geared towards those who are as plain as a diet vanilla milkshake. The spice of the City needs cultivating and that was what Main Street was. It seems to be nothing but an afterthought. That will be a waste and a mistake. Fountain Square may be good for Business, but I still don't see how it build the downtown community. I hope to learn how tonight at the YPCincy event. I am hopeful, but very very skeptical.